**BOOK UPDATE** Well, it’s a developing story. And an exciting one at that. I will share details when I can. How’s that for leaving you hanging? On another note… what do all these books have in common? They’re all great, yes. But, besides that, they have something else in common. They’re all debuts, first (published) — Read More
Oh, booze.
**BOOK UPDATE** My novel is out in the world again, searching for a publishing house to call home. Wish it luck. On another note, who feels like a drink? Thanks to Shortlist.com, I got to know the drinking habits of some famous authors. If you are too lazy to click on the link (after all, — Read More
Thirteen Writing Prompts — by Dan Wiencek
This was originally published in 2006, but I just discovered it over on McSweeney’s. As I finish my book revisions, I’ve been thinking about having some fun with writing prompts to get the creative juices going for a new project. Maybe I should try one of these. Ha. “Thirteen Writing Prompts” by Dan Wiencek 1. — Read More
David Mitchell on how to write: “Neglect everything else”
I like David Mitchell. He’s one of the greatest novelists alive right now. He’s best known for Cloud Atlas, but I really loved Number9Dream. So, when I saw he had a little chat with The Atlantic , I had to read it. You can read the whole thing here. Here’s some of what he had — Read More
Daily routines of famous writers, part 2
I’m weirdly fascinated when I read about the daily routines of writers. I guess I’m curious to see if my routines are similar or different. I’m looking for the key to writing a good novel. I always come to the same conclusion: there is no magical ritual, there is no one way to write. Still, — Read More
Just keep swimming
That’s what I think of when I’m struggling with writing–just keep swimming, just keep swimming. You know, from “Finding Nemo.” If you don’t know, you should watch that movie. That one little phrase has helped me get through hard weeks at work, a week-long trek through the High Sierras, half marathons, and now this book — Read More
Muse, I don’t have time to wait for you.
I’m writing this post as a means to procrastinate. I’m trudging along through my book revision and I have a very intense chapter to write today. With that in mind, I did every errand I could think of. And now here I am, blogging. I swear I will open the dreaded Word document right after — Read More
Great book dedications
Looking at this funny gallery of book dedications makes me wonder who I would dedicate my book to, if I publish it. Or when–WHEN–I publish it. I’m still working on that optimism BS. These are my current 2 contenders: For all the trees who died so I could print out hundreds of drafts of this — Read More
Here we go again
I figure it’s time for a book update. I’ve left y’all hanging. So, at the end of June, I got an agent and she sent my book out to some publishers. Honestly, despite many disappointments with this process before, I was super hopeful. My agent seemed genuinely excited for the book and had so many — Read More
Henry Miller’s 11 commandments
Last week, I posted Stephen King’s 22 writing tips. I went on a tip-finding spree of sorts and found these 11 commandments from Henry Miller (Source: Brain Pickings). He jotted these down during his 1932-33 year-of-writing. Oh, the wonders a good list can do for motivation. 1. Work on one thing at a time until — Read More